Endoscopes have attained great acceptance within the medical community, since they provide a means for performing procedures with minimal patient trauma, while enabling the physician to view the internal anatomy of the patient. Over the years, numerous endoscopes have been developed and categorized according to specific applications, such as cystoscopy, colonoscopy, laparoscopy, upper GI endoscopy and others. Endoscopes may be inserted into the body's natural orifices or through an incision in the skin.
An endoscope is usually an elongated tubular shaft, rigid or flexible, having a video camera or a fiber optic lens assembly at its distal end. The shaft is connected to a handle, which sometimes includes an ocular for direct viewing. Viewing is also usually possible via an external screen. Various surgical tools may be inserted through a working channel in the endoscope for performing different surgical procedures.
Endoscopes, such as colonoscopes, that are currently being used, typically have a front camera for viewing the internal organ, such as the colon, an illuminator, a fluid injector for cleaning the camera lens and other portions of the endoscope, a working channel for insertion of surgical tools, for example, tools for removing polyps found in the colon. Often, endoscopes also have fluid injectors (“jet”) for cleaning a body cavity, such as the colon, into which they are inserted.
Endoscopes such as but not limited to colono/gastroscopes are washed after every use. The endoscopes are connected to a main control unit via a main connector of the endoscope apparatus that also comprises an electrical connector to establish electrical communication between the endoscope apparatus and the main control unit.
While washing the endoscopes with water or other cleaning fluids, it is important to seal off the electrical connector by using a cap or any other means, in order to prevent the washing liquid from entering the connector and causing damage to electrical components. It is possible that sometimes medical professionals cleaning the endoscope may forget to put a connector cover cup on the electrical connector before commencing the washing, resulting in damage to the connector caused by water and other harsh cleaning chemicals.
Hence, there is a need in the art for an alarm/warning system which could detect the absence of a connector cover cup and accordingly notify a medical professional cleaning an endoscope that the electrical connector has not been covered by a connector cover cup. There is thus a need for a warning system which indicates an absence of a connector cover cup when the main connector is not connected to a main control unit.